Five hackers charged in biggest cyber crime case in U.S. history

Five hackers have been charged in what’s being called the biggest data breach in U.S. history.

Yesterday, federal prosecutors announced that they’ve indicted five cyber criminals responsible for a hack that cost targeted companies more than $300 million. Prosecutors say the five men, who are from Russia and Ukraine, stole and sold at least 160 credit card numbers. Two of the suspects are in custody.

According to authorities, each of the men had specialized tasks—two hacked into networks, another mined them for data, another provided anonymous web-hosting services to hide the group’s activities, and another sold the stolen data and distributed the profits.

“This type of crime is the cutting edge,” New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman said in a statement. “Those who have the expertise and the inclination to break into our computer networks threaten our economic wellbeing, our privacy and our national security.”